BILL NUMBER: SB 221	CHAPTERED  09/27/00

	CHAPTER   721
	FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE   SEPTEMBER 27, 2000
	APPROVED BY GOVERNOR   SEPTEMBER 25, 2000
	PASSED THE SENATE   AUGUST 31, 2000
	PASSED THE ASSEMBLY   AUGUST 31, 2000
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY   AUGUST 29, 2000
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY   AUGUST 11, 2000
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY   JUNE 26, 2000
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY   JUNE 14, 2000
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY   MAY 11, 2000
	AMENDED IN SENATE   JULY 8, 1999

INTRODUCED BY   Senator Alpert

                        JANUARY 25, 1999

   An act to amend, repeal, and add Section 8670.32 of the Government
Code, relating to oil spills, and declaring the urgency thereof, to
take effect immediately.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 221, Alpert.  Oil spill prevention.
   (1) Existing law, the Lempert-Keene-Seastrand Oil Spill Prevention
and Response Act, prohibits the operation of a nontank vessel, as
defined, of 300 gross registered tons or greater in the marine waters
of the state unless the owner or operator prepares and submits an
oil spill contingency plan to the administrator for oil spill
response, in accordance with prescribed procedures and requirements,
and the plan is approved.  Existing law prohibits a nontank vessel,
required to have a contingency plan, from entering marine waters of
the state unless the owner or operator has provided to the
administrator evidence of financial responsibility that demonstrates
the ability to pay at least $300,000,000 to cover damages caused by a
spill, and the owner or operator has obtained a certificate of
financial responsibility from the administrator for the vessel.
   Existing law, operative until January 1, 2001, authorizes the
administrator for oil spill response to establish a lower standard of
financial responsibility for nontank barges and marine construction
vessels, as defined, that is not less than the expected costs from a
reasonable worst case oil spill into marine waters.  Existing law
defines the term "reasonable worst case spill" for purposes of those
nontank barges and marine construction vessels.  Existing law
provides that after January 1, 2001, the law in effect before that
date would again become operative.
   This bill would delete the repeal of existing law and would revise
the definition of the term "reasonable worst case spill" to apply
only to the preparation of contingency plans.  The bill would repeal
the definitions of marine construction vessels and nontank barge and
would revise the definition of nontank vessel to mean a vessel of
over 300 gross tons other than a tanker or barge, as those terms are
defined in existing law.
   The bill would also, until January 1, 2003, authorize the
administrator to establish a lower standard of financial
responsibility for nontank vessels that have a carrying capacity of
6500 barrels of oil or less or 7500 barrels of oil or less under
specified circumstances.  The bill would prohibit the administrator
from setting a standard that is less than the expected cleanup costs
and damages from an oil spill into marine waters.
   (2) The bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately
as an urgency statute.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


  SECTION 1.  Section 8670.32 of the Government Code, as amended by
Section 1 of Chapter 687 of the Statutes of 1999, is amended to read:

   8670.32.  (a) The following definitions govern the construction of
this section:
   (1) "Nontank vessel" means a vessel, of 300 gross tons  or
greater, other than a tanker or barge, as those terms are defined in
Section 8670.3.
   (2) "Reasonable worst case spill" means, for the purposes of
preparing contingency plans pursuant to subdivisions (c) to (h),
inclusive, a spill of the total volume of the largest fuel tank on
the nontank vessel.
   (3) "Qualified individual" means a shore-based representative of a
covered nontank vessel owner or operator that, at a minimum, shall
be fluent in English, located in the continental United States, be
available on a 24-hour basis, and have full written authority to
implement the covered nontank vessel's contingency plan.
   (b) A nontank vessel of 300 gross registered tons or greater shall
not operate in the marine waters of the state unless the owner or
operator has an oil spill contingency plan prepared, submitted, and
approved in accordance with this section.
   (c) On or before September 1, 1999, each owner or operator of a
nontank vessel of 300 gross registered tons or greater shall prepare
an oil spill contingency plan for that vessel, and submit the plan to
the administrator for review and approval.  The plan may be specific
to an individual vessel or may be developed using either of the
following:
   (1) A fleet plan submitted by an owner or operator that has a
number of vessels that transit the same or substantially the same
routes in marine waters of the state.  This fleet plan shall contain
all prevention and response elements required pursuant to this
section.  A separate appendix for each vessel shall be included as an
attachment to the plan, and shall include both of the following:
   (A) Specification of the type and total amount of fuel carried.
   (B) Specification of the capacity of the largest fuel tank.
   (2) The owner or operator provides evidence of a contract with the
Pacific Merchant Shipping Association, a nonprofit corporation, or
other nonprofit maritime association, to provide a statewide spill
response plan consistent with the requirements of this section,
pursuant to its applicable fee structure.
   (d) The geographic regions covered by an individual plan shall be
defined in regulations adopted by the administrator.
   (e) In addition to all other contingency plan requirements in this
section, the plan shall contain, at a minimum, a procedure for
management of the resources to be used in response to an oil spill.
   (f) The vessel owner or operator shall submit any information, or
address any plan element that is required by this section but not
addressed by a statewide spill response plan.
   (g) The administrator shall adopt regulations and guidelines to
implement the requirements of this section.  All regulations and
guidelines shall be developed in consultation with the State
Interagency Oil Spill Committee and the Oil Spill Technical Advisory
Committee.  The administrator shall hold a public hearing on the
regulations.  The regulations and guidelines shall provide for the
best achievable protection of coastal and marine resources and shall
include provisions for public review and comment on submitted
contingency plans prior to approval. The regulations shall ensure
that a contingency plan meets all of the following requirements:
   (1) Be consistent with the protection and response strategies as
well as other elements addressed in the state contingency plan and
the appropriate area contingency plan, and is not in conflict with
the national contingency plan.
   (2) Be a written document, reviewed for feasibility and approved
by the owner or operator, or a person designated by the owner or
operator.
   (3) Establish a specific chain of command and specify the overall
responsibilities of crew, supervisorial, contract, and volunteer
personnel.
   (4) Detail procedures for reporting oil spills to local, state,
and federal agencies, and include a list of contacts to call in the
event of a drill, threatened discharge, or discharge.
   (5) Specify lines of communication between the vessel and the
on-scene commanders, response teams, and local, state, and federal
response organizations.
   (6) Provide for response planning, including coordination with
employees, outside contractors, volunteers, and local, state, and
federal agencies.
   (7) Identify a qualified individual.
   (8) Provide the name, address, telephone number, and facsimile
number of an agent for service of process, located in the state and
designated to receive legal documents on behalf of the planholder.
   (9) Demonstrate that shipboard personnel have knowledge of the
notification requirements and other provisions of the contingency
plan.
   (10) Provide for timely and effective oil spill response.  This
may be provided directly or through membership in, or contract with,
a private or public cooperative or other organization and shall be
consistent with the state contingency plan and the appropriate area
contingency plan, and not in conflict with the national contingency
plan.
   (11) Provide evidence that the vessel is in compliance with the
International Safety Management Code, established by the
International Maritime Organization, as applicable.
   (h) Each contingency plan shall be submitted and resubmitted to
the administrator for review and approval as specified in Section
8670.31.
   (i) (1) A nontank vessel, required to have a contingency plan
pursuant to this section, shall not enter marine waters of the state
unless the vessel owner or operator has provided to the administrator
evidence of financial responsibility that demonstrates, to the
administrator's satisfaction, the ability to pay at least three
hundred million dollars ($300,000,000) to cover damages caused by a
spill, and the owner or operator of the vessel has obtained a
certificate of financial responsibility from the administrator for
the vessel.  The administrator may charge a vessel owner or operator
a reasonable fee to reimburse costs to verify and process an
application for evidence of financial responsibility.
   (2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the administrator may establish
a lower standard of financial responsibility for nontank vessels
that have a carrying capacity of 6500 barrels of oil or less, or a
carrying capacity of 7,500 barrels of oil or less for nontank vessels
owned and operated by California or a federal agency.  The standard
shall be based upon the quantity of oil that can be carried by the
nontank vessel and the risk of an oil spill into marine waters.  The
administrator shall not set a standard that is less than the expected
cleanup costs and damages from an oil spill into marine waters.
   (j) A nonprofit maritime association that provides spill response
services pursuant to a spill response plan approved by the
administrator, and its officers, directors, members, and employees
shall have limited liability as follows:
   (1) Section 8670.56.6 applies to any nonprofit maritime
association that provides spill response services pursuant to its
statewide spill response plan.
   (2) A nonprofit maritime association providing spill response plan
services may require, through agreement of the parties, as a
condition of providing these services, the owner or operator of the
nontank vessel to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless the
association and its officers, directors, members, and employees from
all claims, suits, or actions of any nature by whomever asserted,
even though resulting, or alleged to have resulted from, negligent
acts or omissions of the association or of an officer, director,
member, or employee of the association in providing spill response
plan services under the contract.
   (3) Membership in the association or serving as a director of the
association shall not, in and of itself, be grounds for liability
resulting from the activities of the association in the preparation
or implementation of a contingency plan.
   (4) This section shall not be deemed to include the association or
its officers, directors, members, or employees as a responsible
party, as defined in subdivision (q) of Section 8670.3 of this code
and in subdivision (p) of Section 8750 of the Public Resources Code
for the purposes of this chapter, Article 3.5 (commencing with
Section 8574.1) of Chapter 7 of this code, and Division 7.8
(commencing with Section 8750) of the Public Resources Code.
   (5) This section does not limit the liability of any responsible
party, as defined in subdivision (q) of Section 8670.3.  The
responsible party is liable for all damages arising from a spill, as
provided in subdivision (c) of Section 8670.56.6.
   (k) Section 8670.56.6 applies to any person, including, but not
limited to, an oil spill cooperative, its agents, subcontractors, or
employees, that contract with the nonprofit maritime association to
provide spill response services for the association spill response
plan.
   (l) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), any nontank vessel
that is subject to subdivision (b) or (i), and that enters the waters
of the state in violation of subdivision (b) or (i), is subject to
an administrative civil penalty of up to one hundred thousand dollars
($100,000).  The administrator shall assess the civil penalty
against the owner or operator of the vessel pursuant to Section
8670.68.  Each day the owner or operator of a nontank vessel is in
violation of subdivision (b) or (i) shall be considered a separate
violation.
   (2) Paragraph (1) does not apply in any of the following
circumstances:
   (A) A contingency plan has been submitted by the vessel owner or
operator to the administrator as required by this section, and the
office of the administrator is reviewing the plan and has not denied
approval.
   (B) The nontank vessel has entered state waters after the United
States Coast Guard has determined that the vessel is in distress.
   (m) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), any owner or operator
of a nontank vessel that is subject to subdivision (b) or (i) and
who knowingly and intentionally enters the waters of the state in
violation of subdivision (b) or (i), is guilty of a misdemeanor
punishable by up to one year of imprisonment in the county jail, or
by a fine of up to ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or by both that
imprisonment and fine.  Each day the owner or operator of the nontank
vessel is in knowing and intentional violation of subdivision (b) or
(i) shall be considered a separate violation.
   (2) Paragraph (1) does not apply in any of the following
circumstances:
   (A) A contingency plan has been submitted by the vessel owner or
operator to the administrator as required by this section, and the
office of the administrator is reviewing the plan and has not denied
approval.
   (B) The nontank vessel has entered state waters after the United
States Coast Guard has determined that the vessel is in distress.
   (n) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2003, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2003, deletes or extends
that date.
  SEC. 2.  Section 8670.32 is added to the Government Code, to read:

   8670.32.  (a) The following definitions govern the construction of
this section:
   (1) "Nontank vessel" means a vessel, of 300 gross tons or greater,
other than a tanker or barge, as those terms are defined in Section
8670.3.
   (2) "Reasonable worst case spill" means, for the purposes of
preparing contingency plans pursuant to subdivisions (c) to (h),
inclusive, a spill of the total volume of the largest fuel tank on
the nontank vessel.
   (3) "Qualified individual" means a shore-based representative of a
covered nontank vessel owner or operator that, at a minimum, shall
be fluent in English, located in the continental United States, be
available on a 24-hour basis, and have full written authority to
implement the covered nontank vessel's contingency plan.
   (b) A nontank vessel of 300 gross registered tons or greater shall
not operate in the marine waters of the state unless the owner or
operator has an oil spill contingency plan prepared, submitted, and
approved in accordance with this section.
   (c) On or before September 1, 1999, each owner or operator of a
nontank vessel of 300 gross registered tons or greater shall prepare
an oil spill contingency plan for that vessel, and submit the plan to
the administrator for review and approval.  The plan may be specific
to an individual vessel or may be developed using either of the
following:
   (1) A fleet plan submitted by an owner or operator that has a
number of vessels that transit the same or substantially the same
routes in marine waters of the state.  This fleet plan shall contain
all prevention and response elements required pursuant to this
section.  A separate appendix for each vessel shall be included as an
attachment to the plan, and shall include both of the following:
   (A) Specification of the type and total amount of fuel carried.
   (B) Specification of the capacity of the largest fuel tank.
   (2) The owner or operator provides evidence of a contract with the
Pacific Merchant Shipping Association, a nonprofit corporation, or
other nonprofit maritime association, to provide a statewide spill
response plan consistent with the requirements of this section,
pursuant to its applicable fee structure.
   (d) The geographic regions covered by an individual plan shall be
defined in regulations adopted by the administrator.
   (e) In addition to all other contingency plan requirements in this
section, the plan shall contain, at a minimum, a procedure for
management of the resources to be used in response to an oil spill.
   (f) The vessel owner or operator shall submit any information, or
address any plan element that is required by this section but not
addressed by a statewide spill response plan.
   (g) The administrator shall adopt regulations and guidelines to
implement the requirements of this section.  All regulations and
guidelines shall be developed in consultation with the State
Interagency Oil Spill Committee and the Oil Spill Technical Advisory
Committee.  The administrator shall hold a public hearing on the
regulations.  The regulations and guidelines shall provide for the
best achievable protection of coastal and marine resources and shall
include provisions for public review and comment on submitted
contingency plans prior to approval.  The regulations shall ensure
that a contingency plan meets all of the following requirements:
   (1) Be consistent with the protection and response strategies as
well as other elements addressed in the state contingency plan and
the appropriate area contingency plan, and is not in conflict with
the national contingency plan.
   (2) Be a written document, reviewed for feasibility and approved
by the owner or operator, or a person designated by the owner or
operator.
   (3) Establish a specific chain of command and specify the overall
responsibilities of crew, supervisorial, contract, and volunteer
personnel.
   (4) Detail procedures for reporting oil spills to local, state,
and federal agencies, and include a list of contacts to call in the
event of a drill, threatened discharge, or discharge.
   (5) Specify lines of communication between the vessel and the
on-scene commanders, response teams, and local, state, and federal
response organizations.
   (6) Provide for response planning, including coordination with
employees, outside contractors, volunteers, and local, state, and
federal agencies.
   (7) Identify a qualified individual.
   (8) Provide the name, address, telephone number, and facsimile
number of an agent for service of process, located in the state and
designated to receive legal documents on behalf of the planholder.
   (9) Demonstrate that shipboard personnel have knowledge of the
notification requirements and other provisions of the contingency
plan.
   (10) Provide for timely and effective oil spill response.  This
may be provided directly or through membership in, or contract with,
a private or public cooperative or other organization and shall be
consistent with the state contingency plan and the appropriate area
contingency plan, and not in conflict with the national contingency
plan.
   (11) Provide evidence that the vessel is in compliance with the
International Safety Management Code, established by the
International Maritime Organization, as applicable.
   (h) Each contingency plan shall be submitted and resubmitted to
the administrator for review and approval as specified in Section
8670.31.
   (i) A nontank vessel, required to have a contingency plan pursuant
to this section, shall not enter marine waters of the state unless
the vessel owner or operator has provided to the administrator
evidence of financial responsibility that demonstrates, to the
administrator's satisfaction, the ability to pay at least three
hundred million dollars ($300,000,000) to cover damages caused by a
spill, and the owner or operator of the vessel has obtained a
certificate of financial responsibility from the administrator for
the vessel.  The administrator may charge a vessel owner or operator
a reasonable fee to reimburse costs to verify and process an
application for evidence of financial responsibility.
   (j) A nonprofit maritime association that provides spill response
services pursuant to a spill response plan approved by the
administrator, and its officers, directors, members, and employees
shall have limited liability as follows:
   (1) Section 8670.56.6 applies to any nonprofit maritime
association that provides spill response services pursuant to its
statewide spill response plan.
   (2) A nonprofit maritime association providing spill response plan
services may require, through agreement of the parties, as a
condition of providing these services, the owner or operator of the
nontank vessel to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless the
association and its officers, directors, members, and employees from
all claims, suits, or actions of any nature by whomever asserted,
even though resulting, or alleged to have resulted from, negligent
acts or omissions of the association or of an officer, director,
member, or employee of the association in providing spill response
plan services under the contract.
   (3) Membership in the association or serving as a director of the
association shall not, in and of itself, be grounds for liability
resulting from the activities of the association in the preparation
or implementation of a contingency plan.
   (4) This section shall not be deemed to include the association or
its officers, directors, members, or employees as a responsible
party, as defined in subdivision (q) of Section 8670.3 of this code
and in subdivision (p) of Section 8750 of the Public Resources Code
for the purposes of this chapter, Article 3.5 (commencing with
Section 8574.1) of Chapter 7 of this code, and Division 7.8
(commencing with Section 8750) of the Public Resources Code.
   (5) This section does not limit the liability of any responsible
party, as defined in subdivision (q) of Section 8670.3.  The
responsible party is liable for all damages arising from a spill, as
provided in subdivision (c) of Section 8670.56.6.
   (k) Section 8670.56.6 applies to any person, including, but not
limited to, an oil spill cooperative, its agents, subcontractors, or
employees, that contract with the nonprofit maritime association to
provide spill response services for the association spill response
plan.
   (l) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), any nontank vessel
that is subject to subdivision (b) or (i), and that enters the waters
of the state in violation of subdivision (b) or (i), is subject to
an administrative civil penalty of up to one hundred thousand dollars
($100,000).  The administrator shall assess the civil penalty
against the owner or operator of the vessel pursuant to Section
8670.68.  Each day the owner or operator of a nontank vessel is in
violation of subdivision (b) or (i) shall be considered a separate
violation.
   (2) Paragraph (1) does not apply in any of the following
circumstances:
   (A) A contingency plan has been submitted by the vessel owner or
operator to the administrator as required by this section, and the
office of the administrator is reviewing the plan and has not denied
approval.
   (B) The nontank vessel has entered state waters after the United
States Coast Guard has determined that the vessel is in distress.
   (m) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), any owner or operator
of a nontank vessel that is subject to subdivision (b) or (i) and
who knowingly and intentionally enters the waters of the state in
violation of subdivision (b) or (i), is guilty of a misdemeanor
punishable by up to one year of imprisonment in the county jail, or
by a fine of up to ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or by both that
imprisonment and fine.  Each day the owner or operator of the nontank
vessel is in knowing and intentional violation of subdivision (b) or
(i) shall be considered a separate violation.
   (2) Paragraph (1) does not apply in any of the following
circumstances:
   (A) A contingency plan has been submitted by the vessel owner or
operator to the administrator as required by this section, and the
office of the administrator is reviewing the plan and has not denied
approval.
   (B) The nontank vessel has entered state waters after the United
States Coast Guard has determined that the vessel is in distress.
   (n) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2003.
  SEC. 2.5.  Section 8670.32 of the Government Code, as added by
Section 2 of Chapter 687 of the Statutes of 1999, is repealed.
  SEC. 3.  This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate
preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the
meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate
effect.  The facts constituting the necessity are:
   In order that the administrator for oil spill response may
authorize a lower standard of financial responsibility for nontank
vessels as soon as possible, as authorized for small barges pursuant
to subdivision (a) of Section 8670.37.53 of the Government Code, it
is necessary for this act to take effect immediately.
